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Syringe
Syringes are commonly used to inject cats and dogs with insulin. The strength of an insulin is measured in International Units (IUs). The two common strengths are U40 and U100, meaning 40 units and 100 units per millilitre, respectively. There are syringes designed for use with U100 insulin and syringes designed for use with U40 insulin. You can tell the difference between U100 syringes and U40's at a glance. They are universally color-coded: U100 syringes have orange caps while U40's have red ones. This page lists the locations in which you need or don't need a prescription to buy syringes. Syringe use Insulin syringes are intended for a single use only. Using them twice may contaminate and/or interfere with some insulin's activity, in addition to wearing the protective coating off the needle and causing more pain at injection. Some people use yesterday's syringe or disposable needle as a lancet, though. There are times when you may want to prefill a syringe with a known dose and leave it for yourself or someone else to use later. If doing so, keep in mind: *Recap the needle with great care -- needles can easily go through the side of the cap into your fingers. *Store the recapped needle point-up to avoid clogging the needle. *If the insulin needs refrigeration normally, so do the prefilled syringes. * The "cloudy" insulins (NPH, Lente/Ultralente, PZI, Mixes) need to be re-suspended before use. Gently roll the syringe back and forth in your hands as with the vial. Improperly suspended insulin may lose some or all of its effectiveness. *Some insulins, including Lantus and Vetsulin, will react with the syringe's inner coating over time and lose effectiveness, or even lose their time-delay action. Check with your insulin manufacturer if prefilling syringes is permitted. Tips: *If drawing insulin from a vial, set the syringe plunger to the dosage you want to draw, put the needle into the top of the vial while the vial is still upright, and push all the air out of the syringe. This will maintain air pressure equilibrium in the vial once you draw the dose and, because the vial is upright, will not cause air bubbles to mix with the solution. Turn the vial upside down and draw the insulin. If you do get air bubbles into the syringe, it's ok with most insulins to re-inject the insulin into the vial and draw again until the air is gone. Check that this is ok with your insulin. See also injecting insulin. * Some caregivers find that certain syringe brands are less susceptible to air bubbles than others because they have a smoother push and pull motion. If you consistently have problems with air bubbles, consider trying other syringe brands. *For very fine dosing (less than half a unit increments), some people have tried: **Using a magnifier. **Diluting the insulin (this must be done with the correct diluent and usually is done by a pharmicist.) **Using a U100 syringe with U40 insulin and converting (see Conversion below). **Experimenting with the size of droplets they can coax from a syringe, learning those sizes, and measuring them against fractional unit sizes. **Plungers may be pushed or pulled with a "screwing" motion for finer control of partial units. U100 Syringes Because U100 insulin syringes are designed for human use, they are available from brick-and-mortar or Internet pharmacies that sell diabetic supplies. You also can order from an Internet pet pharmacy such as this one. In the US, you can expect to pay $15 to $25 for a box of 100 U100 syringes depending on the retailer and the features of the syringe. Barrel. U100 syringes are available in 3 barrel sizes: 1cc, 1/2cc, and 3/10cc. The size refers to the maximum volume of insulin the syringe will hold. * The 1cc syringe holds a maximum of 100 units of U100 insulin. * The 1/2cc syringe holds a maximum of 50 units of U100 insulin. * The 3/10cc syringe holds a maximum of 30 units of U100 insulin. Because of the small number of insulin units given to cats, most caregivers use the 3/10cc syringe when it is available. The 3/10cc syringe has 1 unit marks. Some manufacturers also have 3/10cc syringes with 1/2 unit marks. Needle. U100 syringes come with a long (12.7mm or 1/2”) or short (8mm or 5/16”) needle. Most syringes with 1/2 unit markings come in the short length, although some manufacturers do put long needles on barrels with 1/2 unit markings. Some caregivers with long-haired cats prefer the long needle so that they make sure they make it through the fur to the skin. Some feline caregivers prefer the short needle because it minimizes the chance that they will “shoot through” the tent and spill the insulin onto the cat’s fur on the other side. However, some caregivers report difference in insulin absorption with different length needles. This BG marketing information explains that you should consult with your health care professional before using a short needle, and carefully monitor blood glucose when changing to a shorter needle. Some people have found their blood glucose not well-controlled when switching to the shorter needles; this also has been the case with some dogs. Switching back to a longer needle solved the problem. You should consider experimenting with the different length needles. Gauge. U100 syringes come in different thicknesses of needle: the gauge. The higher the gauge, the thinner the needle. Common gauges range from 28 to 31. Caregivers report that thinner needles make the shot more comfortable for the cat. The 31 gauge syringes are available only with short needles. Syringe brands. Common brands of U100 syringes are BD and Monoject. This page has links to syringe brand comparisons. This pagegives an overview of all BD syringe types with clickable photos that enlarge. Wal-Mart has a house brand of syringes, ReliOn, that compare to BD syringes in everything except price. This page has a clickable photo that enlarges for better comparison of the BD syringe and the ReliOn. Wal-Mart also has a ReliOn/Novolin branded insulin, which is made for it by NovoNordisk. The only difference here also is in the price. Precision Sure-Dose syringes are marketed by Abbott. They compare favorably to BD, but cost quite a bit less. This page describes all available models and has a clickable photo that enlarges for a better look. CVS pharmacies in the US stock and offer Precision syringes. UltiCare offers U100 syringes with barrel sizes 3/10 cc (no 1/2 unit markings), 1/2 cc, and 1 cc with a variety of needle gauges from 28-31. Its 28 and 29 gauge syringes have a 1/2" needle while its 30 and 31 gauge syringes have a 5/16" needle. Factoring in shipping, the prices are about equal to buying syringes offline. No prescription is needed to purchase syringes from UltiCare; it is located in Minnesota where no state law requires it. Shipping within the US only. Hocks.com offers a broad range of U100 syringes at reasonable prices. Shipping within the US only. U40 Syringes Many caregivers use the insulins Caninsulin/Vetsulin, PZI, and other U40 strength insulin with U40 syringes. Comparing two 1/2cc syringes side by side, you will see that the units on the U40 syringe appear larger than that of the U100 syringe. If you were to take the two syringes and fill them with insulin, water, or any other fluid, both the U100 and the U40 syringe would each hold 1/2cc of it. This UK Internet pharmacy has a photo of a Caninsulin syringe, which when clicked, enlarges to a full size photo of it. Vetsulin syringes would be identical to these, as Vetsulin is the US brand name for the Intervet insulin. The manufacturers of Caninsulin make special syringes with magnifying glasses to help to ensure that the correct dose of insulin is drawn up. UltiCare offers U40 insulin syringes in both 1/2cc and 1cc barrel sizes. All of its U40 syringes have 29 gauge, 1/2" needles. The 1/2cc syringes are offered with and without the UltiGuard disposal system; if you want to buy 1cc syringes from this company, they are only offered with the UltiGuard disposal system. These are comparable to BD syringes, and it appears that the 1/2cc syringes minus the UltiGuard disposer are cheaper than the Caninsulin/Vetsulin syringes. Shipping within the US only and no prescription needed to buy from UltiCare. This Internet pet pharmacy also has U40 syringes. Conversion Though it's not recommended by veterinarians, some caregivers use a U100 syringe with a U40 insulin. That requires “converting” the U40 concentration to a U100 strength. See the conversion table. If you choose to use the U100 syringes for U40 insulin, a fast way to calculate the right amount of units is to multiply the number of U40 units given by 2.5. The advantage of doing this conversion is the possibility of greater precision for low-dose animals -- precise dose increments of 0.2 units are possible with half-unit marked U100 syringes. On the other hand, if you find the conversion confusing, it's best not to try -- it can be extremely dangerous to get this math wrong. Syringe disposal You should dispose of syringes and other "sharps," like lancets, in accordance with your local, state or provincial, or national laws. Consult your trash company, your local or state/provincial health department, or your vet or pharmacist for that information. In some places, sharps have to be disposed of as "medical waste." Some people take them to the vet or pharmacy for such disposal--whether required to by law or not--although that may involve a fee. In other places, there are no specific requirements. You can seal them in a plastic container (such an empty laundry detergent or soda bottle), mark them as sharps, and put them in the regular trash. Some pharmacies also carry sharps containers for about $3-$5 in the US. This page has links to additional information under the heading "Needle Disposal." Category:Supplies Category:Tips